Balance Beam
by Uazula
Summary: When Kara Houshakuji, a 16 year old from a wealthy European family, enrolls in Ouran High, the last thing she predicts is finding the Host Club. Now adding onto the stresses in her own family , will she be able to survive the Host Club's ridiculousness?
1. Discoveries

Chapter 1

The tap of my shoes echoed in the expanse of the large hall. I began to climb laboriously up the flight of a grand staircase, headed towards the destination that had been written on the paper I clutched in my hand. Turning around corner after corner for what seemed to last forever, I found my destination. Halting before a pair of double doors, I once again peered closely at my paper.

"Music Room Three, huh?" I thought out loud to myself. "Well, this must be the place..."

Cautiously, I placed my hand on the cold door handle. I breathed in, mentally preparing myself for the task ahead. Mustering every inch of courage I had, I twisted the handle and gave the door a slight push. Despite its groan of protest, it swung open rather easily. Taking two steps into the room, I looked up from where my eyes had been glued to the floor.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for..."

_ EEEEEP!_

I was stopped mid-sentence. Seven gorgeous high-schoolers instantly blinded my view... all in the process of removing their shirts (minus one). I blinked repeatedly, attempting to discern just what exactly was going on. At the sound of the opening door, all of their faces turned toward me.

"Um.. oops, sorry..." I managed to stutter. "I didn't mean to interrupt, errrr... whatever it was you were about to do." I began to slowly back out of the room as a slight blush formed on my face.

"Ahhh, I don't believe I've ever seen your lovely face here, mademoiselle," said the tall blonde one. He said this as though it was the most natural thing in the world for him to be shirtless with a bunch of other dudes. "In fact, I don't believe I've ever seen your face at all! Are you a new student here at Ouran?"

"Well, yes but..."

"My my! I don't believe I've ever seen such a lovely face on a girl, wouldn't you agree, men?" He turned towards his "men" and waited almost expectantly for their answer.

"Well, she is quite attractive." I peered around the blonde boy to discover that the voices in unison had come from two red-headed twins. Well... It was actually more of an orange. Orange-headed was probably a better term. "Although her hairstyle could use some work."

Annoyed, I casually brushed my bangs away from my face, only for them to fall back to their original place.

"Hikaru! Kaoru! Be kind to our first time guest!" Turning back towards me, he swung his right arm down low in front of him and bowed. "We welcome you to our Host Club!" Straightening himself, he smiled and excitedly began what seemed to me to be a well practiced welcoming speech. "So what kind of guys are you into? Do you like the strong, silent type?" Blondie said, gesturing towards the very tall, black haired boy standing silently in the back of the group. Besides his emotionless stare, the boy made no attempt to even acknowledge my presence.

"Or perhaps you are into boy-lolitas?" I assumed he meant the little blonde boy clutching a pink bunny to his chest. His eyes were unnaturally large. However, it made him look extremely cute, and I could almost feel my Moe senses tingling.

"The little devil type?" The twin boys smiled deviously at me, making gestures for me to come closer. I grimaced in their direction, but this almost seemed to excite their playful mood.

"How about the natural type?" The smaller, girly looking boy smiled in a friendly way, waving his hand. He seemed... almost unsure of himself. Very weak, to be precise.

"Maybe the cool type?" The one with glasses looked up from the black book he had been scribbling in and nodded towards me in acknowledgment.

"Or perhaps," Blondie said, creeping closer and finally grasping my hand and pressing it to his lips, "You're into the princely type, like myself. What do you say?"

Gathering all the strength I could possibly gather into my hand, I slapped him away. Smirking at the sight of his horrified face, I said, "Sorry to disappoint, but I didn't come here for your Host Club." Surprisingly enough, none of the other members made any advances to support their now-in-pain leader. I briefly wondered if Blondie was slapped often.

With a hurt expression on his face, he began to massage the place where I had slapped him. "Then what did you come here fo..."

"WHOA HO HO HO HO HO HO HO HO HO HO!"

(Electric Motor)

Suddenly, a platform began to rise from within the floor of the music room. I panicked internally, but when I noticed that no one else seemed to be very surprised, I cooled off. I also realized that the maniacal laughter that had seemed to be coming from underneath the floor of the music room was extremely familiar.

"Grrrrr! Renge! Couldn't you show up at a different time?" Blondie whined. Still shirtless, I might add. As where the rest, however some of them began to put on their shirts when they saw Renge. "We were just about to figure out this young lady's reason for coming!"

"Actually..." I said, smiling. "She IS my reason for coming."

Confused, the Host Club members looked at Renge, who suddenly exclaimed,

"Kara? Kara Houshakuji? Oh wow! It's so good to see you!"

Leaping off the platform, Renge charged towards me. I barley had time to prepare for impact before she embraced me in a suffocatingly powerful hug.

"I'm so glad to see you! I just _knew_ you'd come to Ouran Academy! I just _knew_ it!" Without releasing her choke-hold around my neck with one arm, she swept her other arm in a dramatically large gesture toward the high school boys (who all looked thoroughly confused) and proclaimed, "These boys are all part of the Host Club I manage. Impressive, huh?"

Practically choking, I managed to squeak out, "Sure Renge, but can you please let me go?" After releasing me, and after I relearned how to breathe, I smiled and said, "Good to see you too."

"Now wait! Hold on!" The twins yelled in perfect unison. "First off, who the hell are you?" One said, pointing at me accusingly.

"And who are you to Renge?" The other finished. Both of them seemed slightly huffy, most likely from not having complete knowledge of the situation.

Renge chuckled in that strange way of hers. "Can't you see the resemblance?"

Forcefully pulling my face close to hers, she announced,

"We're cousins."


	2. Adaptations

Chapter 2

The Host Club Is Now Open

"Well, Ms. Houshakuji, you certainly caught us off-guard showing up a whole hour before we began our club activities, wouldn't you agree?"

"Mm." I made no attempt to give a coherent reply. I was still a little bit ticked off. Renge had insisted that I stayed and watched the Host Club members "in action." She thought that it would be a good opportunity to get to know some kids from Ouran. However, this was much to my dismay. My personality didn't really call for repetitive patterns of human interaction, and that went double for hanging out with a bunch of weirdos. So instead of being at Renge's lush mansion, listening to music, drawing, or even... dare I say it... taking care of my monster of a little brother (who moved here with me against my will)... I was here, listening to this blonde idiot prattle with a platoon of crazy high school girls on both of his sides.

Great.

"You know, my lady..." Blondie began. When he didn't continue, I forced myself to make eye-contact with him. As soon as he "had my attention", he continued. "You don't have to stay here beside me. Go on, go ahead and see the other hosts. I'm sure they'd love your company." With that, he smiled and motioned me on with a flick of his wrist.

More than happy to take up his offer, I speed-walked my way over to the closest hosts. This just so happened to be the twin boys, Hikaru and Kaoru. I hadn't had the time (or the interest) to realize that they were all in similar cosplay. Apparently, today was "bad-boy gangster". Dressed like two dangerous dudes, the twins almost appeared to be mirror images of each other, only with subtle differences. As I neared them, I happened to stumble upon the start of one of their acts. With their cosplay marking them as violent thugs, the little performance they where putting on didn't seem to fit them.

"Hikaru, you would protect me from anyone who tried to hurt me, wouldn't you?" Kaoru looked up with overly-dramatic, tear-filled eyes. He seemed to be genuinely frightened. Mesmerized by his excellent acting skills, I waited for Hikaru's reaction.

"Don't be silly, no one would even be able to _try_ to hurt you with me around." He wrapped his arms around Kaoru's waist in an almost seductive manner and whispered, "Don't worry, I'll protect you."

Kaoru then tenderly embraced him back, a blush crossing his now relieved, thankful face. They held each other like that for a long while. The girls at their table sighed and whispered things like, "How beautiful," and, "Their love for each other is so strong!"

...

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

I burst into a fit of laughter. It hurt so much that I clutched my sides for support.

Breaking from their affectionate display, the twins glared at me and simultaneously exclaimed, "What's so funny?"

Between giggles I began, "You two... ha ha.. are... hee, hilarious! How... ha ha ha... you... heh heh... even get business... ha ha... is beyond me!" I continued to laugh. The girls around Hikaru and Kaoru stared at me, uncomprehending. The twins continued to glare, although their piercing gaze had softened a little into a slight look of... wonder? I suppose that is how I would describe it. After realizing that my presence was hindering the twins ability to attract customers, I decided to move on to the next host. I could almost feel their stares burning a whole into my back as I walked away.

Next stop was the boy Lolita and the, errm... stoic one.

As I approached the table where the silent, extremely tall boy and his guests were, I realized that there was a stunning lack of boy-lolita. Before I could ask, however, something quickly zoomed past me. Nearly knocking me over, said little blonde boy raced by. It was obvious that he was freaking out, as he began to tug harshly at the big one's uniform. I eagerly awaited the spectacle. "Takashi! Takashi! I can't find Usa-Chan! He's _gone_! What'll I do?" Huge tears began to pour down his cheeks. The girls became teary-eyed as well and began to offer suggestions about where he could have left... "Usa-Chan". Little bunny-boy just continued to sob. He really was pretty adorable.

"Mitskuni." Takashi said, reaching to the right of his position on the couch. "You left him here on the couch." He then held up the stuffed bunny for Mitskuni to see.

_He has a deep voice._ I thought to myself.

"Takashi!" Mitskuni leaped into Takashi's arms and sobbed, clutching his "found" Usa-Chan to his chest.

"Awwww! SO cute!" The girls shrieked, flailing about.

Swallowing my growing sense of Moe, I forced myself away from the spectacle. I began to cross to the other side of the room, headed towards the little girly one. However, before I reached him, I halted beside glasses. He was leaning against a wall, writing casually into a black notebook.

"So," I began, approaching him. When I didn't garner a physical response, I assumed he was listening and continued, "What exactly is your position at this Host Club of yours?" I used this opportunity to sneak a look into his notebook. It was mostly in Japanese characters, however sometimes he slipped into English. I found this rather amusing.

"Well, as the vice-president, it's my job to take care of the funds and what-not. Mostly, however, my job is to make sure that our king, Tamaki, doesn't over-shoot our budget," he said, still scribbling into the book.

"Interesting," I whispered quietly, mostly to myself. "Is Tamaki that much of a hassle?"

"Hmm?" Glasses looked at me curiously. I really couldn't see his eyes because of the glare, but I assumed they held a curious look.

"Oh... it's nothing." He continued to jot things down. _About me?_ "So... what's your name? Or rather, what would you like me to call you?" I asked, mostly to break the silence.

He paused writing in his book for just a moment to answer my question. "You may call me Kyoya."

"I see." After standing there for a while, the atmosphere became a little too awkward. This was mostly because of the silence, but I couldn't really think of anything to chat about. So, without another word, I casually slipped away towards the last host.

"Excuse me." I said to the girly one as I approached. He looked up from his guests and, after taking a look of dumbfounded-ness off of his face, smiled warmly at me.

"Hello there, Ms. Houshakuji. My name is Haruhi Fujioka. How do you like the Host Club so far? I hope no one has weird-ed you out yet." The girls giggled and said, "Oh, Haruhi." They then continued to chat pleasantly amongst themselves.

_Too late for that, Haruhi._ I thought to myself. After this, I found myself staring intently at Haruhi. He had a dark shade of brown hair and deep, dark brown eyes. All in all, a really..._ pretty_ person. That was the only way I could describe him. Pretty. However, this got me thinking. I felt like there was something off about him. The way his eyes were. Too big to be boys' eyes. And his body language. Almost... girl-like.

"Something wrong?" Haruhi asked, obviously concerned as to why I had been staring at him for so long. Even his voice was off. Soft and low, femininity clouding its every intonation. Yes, there was something strange about this boy.

Very strange.


	3. Situations

Chapter 3

BEEP BEEP BEEP

"Uhhhhggg..." I groaned, sitting up as I did. I opened my eyes slowly, desperately attempting to banish the inevitable from my weary mind and body. However, there was no way to trick myself: It was morning, and I _had_ to get up. I reached over and slapped my hand down on the alarm clock and groaned again, falling back onto my pillow. A stream of light from the nearby window hit my face, almost as if it was also trying to (rudely) awaken me.

I hate Mondays. After a beautiful weekend of sleeping in, you're forced to set your alarm once again and get your butt up for school. Shielding my eyes from the glaring sun, I got out of my bed and headed towards my "other room" that served as my closet. Opening the door, I was instantly assaulted with the brightness of my freshly ironed, bright yellow, hideous school uniform. Along with it was a fresh pair of knee-high socks and my shiny, newly polished black shoes. I slowly let my nightgown fall to the floor and began to pull myself into my uniform.

"Who designed this yellow banana dress, anyway?" I thought aloud, adjusting the fit around my middle. After completing the ensemble, I decided that the only way to cure my sour mood was to get a good breakfast inside me. As I exited the room, visions of sausages and pancakes caused my mouth to water.

I went at a swift trot to the dining room. As soon as I entered the ornate, high ceiling-ed dining hall, I quickly zoned in on the dining table where I saw three steaming hot plates of who-knows-what on the table. Humming to myself, I walked over to them, hoping that pancakes were on today's breakfast menu.

Then another thought occurred to me. And that thought just happened to be of my brother. My brother, meal time, and I never really got along. Those situations usually turned into huge argument sessions or food fights. I found myself praying that my brother wasn't up yet...

"LOOK OUT BELOW!" Came an all too familiar voice. Apparently, my prayer had not been heard. Or it had been heard and quickly ignored. Either option was plausible.

Looking up in fear, I saw my little brother, Akio, who was preparing to shoot a small stone from his sling-shot. He was perched precariously... from a chandelier. Grinning at me with that famous mischievous look he almost always wore, he stretched his slingshot to its maximum potential.

"AKIO! You stupid... Get _down_ from there! We'll _both_ get in trouble if you stay up th..."

BAM!

Right in the middle of my forehead, the stone pinged off of me with an audible crack. I touched my forehead in shock and let out a gasp as a slight dampness oozed from the wound onto my fingertips.

"THAT'S IT!" I shrieked, climbing onto the table. _Who gave him that sling-shot anyway? _I screamed inwardly.

As soon as I had my balance atop the table, I reached up toward the chandelier. I wildly grabbed for Akio's foot as he laughed uproariously. This only served to fuel my anger.

"Nice try!" Akio laughed as I once again failed to catch his leg. He then proceeded to kick me square in the face.

"I am going to KILL you!" I screamed as I reached once again for his foot. However, my vision was blurry from being struck. By some miraculous miracle, I finally managed to grab his flailing leg.

I tugged at it with all the strength I could muster. Suddenly, I felt a falling sensation. Surely enough, I was falling through the air. I made sure to never let go of Akio.

We hit the ground hard. I cursed to myself, realizing that we had both just landed on cold, hard marble. Banishing the throbbing sensation from my back, I leaped on the still recovering Akio and attempted to wrestle him into a pinned position. For a middle school first-year, he was pretty strong.

"HA!" He yell-laughed, managing to flip me over and pin me down instead. "Poor Ane-_Baka_ still can't beat me up to save her life. Weak girl." He then spat on my face. I barely had enough time to contain my scream of rage before I heard footsteps approaching.

"What is going on in here?" A maid made her appearance in the dining hall's kitchen entryway. I briefly wondered what took her so long to hear our fighting.

Mouth agape, she stood there, staring at the dining room table. I turned my head and followed her gaze.

All of the food on the table had been spilled onto the floor, covered by the table runner. Apparently, Akio and I had ripped it off the table during our struggle. The maid stood there staring, completely rigid. I could have sworn that I saw her eye twitching.

"He he he..." Akio and I chuckled sheepishly. We then glared at each other, and I could almost hear his thoughts echo my own. _"Don't copy me!"_

(Later; 9:30 A.M.)

"I still can't believe you managed to ruin the entire morning's breakfast, Kara. I am SO hungry!"

"I told you Renge, it was that stupid Akio's fault!" I nearly yelled, seething. I could feel the over-sized band aid weighing down my forehead.

"Well, it doesn't matter whose fault it was, 'cause both of you should be to blame! The whole place looks terrible!"

Renge and I were walking to our morning classes. I had been forced to describe the incident in detail to both Renge's "head of household" (a.k.a., her aunt) and the kitchen staff. Not only that, but I had to ask for their forgiveness.

Multiple times.

My brother, on the other hand, got off easy. Considering I was older, most of the blame had been mine to shoulder. Akio was mealy given a, "Don't do that again, alright?" And a pat on the head. Being as short as he was, Akio could get away with that whole I'm-a-loli-so-I-am-not-at-fault thing. At first, this had pissed me off to no end, but after multiple repeats of almost the exact same situation, I began to accept it as a fact of life.

Much to my joy, I was once again explaining what had went down in the dining room, this time to Renge. Unfortunately for me, both of our class schedules were exactly the same, probably due to our similar last names. Not that I don't like Renge, it's just that she can get on my nerves incredibly easily, like my brother. It's not a warm thought.

"Remember Kara, you've got to come to the Host Club right after school, k? If you skip I won't forgive you!" Her eyes stared me down, and scarily enough, I'm pretty sure "not forgiving me" was the least of her revenge plans.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." I said as cheerily as I could manage while simultaneously resisting the erg to slowly inch away from her.

(Later ((again)) 3:15 P.M.)

I walked sluggishly towards Music Room Three. I was in no mood to watch a bunch of loons entertain shrieking girls for a whole hour. Not that going home and facing Akio was a welcomed situation, though. It had been a long, exhausting day, and I was almost certain that I would have even more apologizing to do once I got back to the mansion.

The big double doors were already cracked open as I approached them. I pushed one lightly, and it swung open with a creak. I briefly wondered why this elite school could not take the time to spray some WD-40 on those hinges...

"Welcome." Seven familiar boys said in unison. The overly-bright aura that the room gave off caused me to squint, and I considered running before I got too involved. However, Renge's "threat" was in the back of my mind, so I took a deep breath and opened my eyes.

The cosplay today was angels and demons. Hikaru, Kyoya, and Mori were dressed as demons, while the others (Haruhi, Tamaki, Honey, and Kaoru) were dressed as angels. I understood the basic idea of the cosplay, but Mori? As a demon? Was there something about him that I should know?

Tamaki spun a full circle and then bowed low to me. "Ah! Kara! What a pleasure it is to see your face once more! Come and choose your side. Light... or dark!"

_This is going to be a LONG hour._


	4. Musings

Chapter 4

The Host Club Is Now Open

"Let's play the 'Which one is Hikaru game!'"

The girls around Hikaru and Kaoru giggled with glee. However, there was one girl who didn't partake of their ludicrous excitement. And that girl was me. I had decided to spend today watching the twins do their thing. For some unknown reason, I had taken a liking to them. Probably because their antics amused me. It wasn't everyday that you saw two homosexual twin males actively expressing their desire for one another in front of a livid, Moe-encompassed female audience.

"Go on, make a guess ladies," one of them said. "There's a fifty fifty chance you'll get it right!" The other added. On top of their cosplay they had slipped on two hats, which I presumed was an attempt to cover up which way they parted their hair. Strangely enough, the hat didn't exactly fit in with their angel/devil cosplay. Considering that the twins mother was a fashion designer, I would have thought that their head-wear would be a little less clashy.

"How can we? It's hard enough that you are wearing the hats!" One girl proclaimed, giggling.

"It seems like you two get more identical every year!" Another said, and the girls laughed.

The twins merely looked on, their eyes sparkling with fake mirth. I found myself carefully studying the two of them. No matter how hard I looked, there was just no way for me to discern between the two of them. They were just too similar. After the girl's laughter died down, the twin's eyes roved around their audience until their eyes finally rested on me.

"Hmm?" I decided to not answer coherently. I was too tired and had much too little interest in whatever little game they were about to play with me. I could just sense the building mischief in their stares.

"Kara, do you want to make an attempt?" They said together, smiling that devilish smile of theirs. "However, it's a rather difficult gamble. Not one person has gotten it right before."

"NUH UH!" Mitskuni announced. _Or should I call him 'senpai'? He is two years older than me... So then, would it be 'Honi-senpai'? _I thought to myself.

Then suddenly I was creeped-out. How had he heard our conversation? He had been on the other side of the room a second ago...

"Remember Kao-chan? Hika-chan? Haru-chan guessed right! Right, Takashi?"

Takashi, er... Mori-senpai, was suddenly beside him, nodding vigorously. How did they appear like that?

"Fine, _one_ person has gotten it right," They both said in a glum tone. Turning their attention back to me, their attitudes brightened. "But that doesn't mean _you'll_ get it right. Go on Kara, guess!" A smug smile appeared on both of their faces. They struck a pose in which the two of them were in the exact same position, only it was as if they were mirror images of each other. I stared at the two of them for a moment, taking in their challenge. My nervousness began to well up. I could feel the ever-present stares of the twin's clients upon me, and it wasn't helping that Mr. Stoic and Moe-bunny were there as well.

"Hold on!" I suddenly said, feeling the need to break the silence. I felt a small sense of frustration come over me. "I've barely known you two for, let's see... 2 hours. And that's at the most. And you already expect me to guess the difference between your two identical faces?"

"Uh... well, yes." They said simultaneously, slightly baffled.

"Look guys, you can't just go around expecting people to tell the difference between the two of you. That kind of thing... it's something that takes time. A person has to get to know you, has to understand each of you for who you are. If your faces are completely identical, then the only other thing that will make you different is your personalities. I hardly know you two, so how do you expect me to tell?"

The twins eyes were fixed on me. After a second of silence that seemed to take an hour, one twin broke the quiet. "Jeez, it's just a simple question, we don't need you to freak out over it."

I suddenly realized how over-dramatic I was about the whole thing. Slightly embarrassed, I grimaced at the twins. They then got their composure and their whole similarity act back on and returned to their guests.

I sighed. I guess I had been a tad over-the-top. I still had no idea what had caused me to say something like that. I wasn't really the sensitive type, and big, mushy lectures like the one I had just given where a rarity for me. I decided that now was a good time to walk away and search for something new to do. It was then that I felt a tug on my sleeve. I turned my head and, expecting to see someone at my eye level, was surprised to see Honi-senpai standing there, gazing up at me.

"You know, what you said was true," he said, looking at me straight in the eyes. I would have never guessed that those big, blue eyes could ever look so serious. "If the twins had realized that sooner, I bet that most of their childhood problems could have been solved."

"Child-hood problems...?" I half asked. Then senpai smiled an innocent smile and ran back to Mori-senpai. I watched for a moment as he leaped into the larger boy's arms. Unfortunately for me, my moment of peaceful pondering was interrupted by yet another tug at my sleeve.

"Come on Kara, it's time to go." I turned to look and was not surprised to discover Renge. I could pick out that annoying voice of her's from a mile away. When I didn't reply, she sighed and dragged me forcefully towards the exit.

"Wait, hold on. I have to grab my bag."

"Uhhhgg, Kara! Just make it quick! I am waiting outside, okay?" She pranced toward the door before turning to me and adding, "Hurry hurry!"

Just as I had gathered by bag up, I looked up towards the direction of the twins. Their clients were gone, and they were seated in the same area, alone. Their faces looked bored, passive. But their was another emotion in their gazes. Sadness, maybe? Loneliness? Or it could have just been my poor eyesight. Or my poor ability to judge emotion. Either option was plausible.

"Childhood problems..." I mumbled to myself. Once again, I was interrupted. An annoyed shriek came from outside the door, calling me to attention.

"Let's GO Kara!" Renge's obviously annoyed scream came from just outside the doors, but it appeared to be moving swiftly away.

And with the distinct feeling that I could, in fact, get left behind by Renge, I left Music Room Three. I listened to the sound of my shoes tapping on the shiny marble. It echoed impressively around the hall. It almost lulled me into a dream like state, like it was trying to get me to remember something. Something familiar...

Deja vu.


	5. Terrors

Chapter 5

It was an early morning Wednesday. I had just emerged from Renge's limousine. Renge had immediately taken off and said she'd "meet up with me later". Hoping that her version of 'later' would never come to pass, I walked towards Ouran Academy, mentally preparing myself for the day. The air was cold and bitter, but not uncomfortable. I had always enjoyed freezing temperatures, and today's chill was no exception. While I watched other students rush past me, eager to reach the warmth of the indoors, I walked at a leisurely pace, savoring the late fall cold.

That's when I first saw him.

Leaning casually against one of the school's many entryway columns, his form caught my attention instantaneously. My eyes flickered to his form as I reached the top step of the small flight of outdoor stairs. Out of all of the students, he was the only one not moving. He seemed indifferent to the cold, indifferent to the looks that the other students gave him. His hair was the brightest red color I had ever seen before in hair, and it was so long that part of it had been pulled back into a pony-tail. Unfortunately, that only did more to reveal his face.

His absolutely terrifying face.

His eyes seemed to stare into nothing, but the anger inside them was unmistakable. The scowl on his lips enhanced his raged expression, and his brow was creased into what appeared to be a permanent, angry slant. As I openly gawked at the boy, my steps slowed. Before I even knew it, I had almost stopped completely. That's when the unthinkable happened.

Our eyes met.

I had never been so terrified. His very gaze sent a shocking cold throughout my body, and everything seemed to slow around me. My steps stopped, and my body froze in place. He continued to stare me down, imprinting his piercing gaze into my mind. Just when it seemed I could move no longer, the sound of the clock tower brought me out of my trance. As soon as I recollected my thoughts and regained the motion of my legs, I made a split second decision.

I had never run so fast before in my life.

(Later; 10:23 A.M.)

Sitting in my first period class, I found myself growing more and more restless. I couldn't help but continue to think of that strange boy. My pencil tapped on my desk erratically, which gained more than one irritated glance from the teacher and the other students. But I honestly couldn't stop myself (or care less about what they thought). I had never met or seen someone like him before in my life. Someone who made me freeze up in terror like that... Never before had I ever considered the possibility of such a frightening person existing. When the teacher finally left the room, I turned around to face Haruhi, whom I sat in front of.

"Uh, Haruhi?" I asked as soon as the other student chatter in the room could cover up my voice. My own voice came out soft and scratchy, and I assumed it was because of my earlier encounter with the red-headed boy.

Looking up from his notebook, which he was scribbling furiously in, (which, I might add, kind of reminded me of Kyoya-senpai) he gave me a curious look and asked, "Is there... something wrong?"

I must have had a quite and expression on my face, because both of the twins leaned in with the same curious mask on. Attempting to calm myself and get a look of impassiveness to contort my real expression, I began,

"Yeah... you see... This morning, I was walking into the school and... well, I saw this... boy. He was standing outside of the school..." Before I finished, the twins grinned and snickered. I paused in my story and gave each of them a questioning look.

"Hmmm." They looked at each other slyly. "It appears as though little Kara has a crush on someone, eh?" As they finished their tactless comment, their grins widened considerably.

Giving them my best 'stop being stupid' face I could manage, I snarled, "No." They both rolled their eyes and shrugged at each other. I continued, "This boy, he was, well... he was... Ah, what the heck! He was extremely scary looking. When he looked at me... He made me freeze up. I couldn't move. As stupid as that sounds..." When neither Haruhi nor Hikaru nor Kaoru commented, I started to blush a little. "I just wanted... to know who he was..." I stopped, feeling embarrassed.

Haruhi, his big eyes full of comprehension, suddenly exhaled while simultaneously breathing, "Ritsu."

"Rits-... Rits-who?"

"Ritsu Kasanoda." The twins said together. It was almost monotonous sounding.

"I wouldn't blame you if you were scared of him..." said one, resting his head on his hand, looking away.

"Even though we've tried to change him, he's still extremely scary-looking," finished the other with slightly more interest. However, he immediately went back to playing with his pumpkin eraser head.

"I wonder what makes him that way..." I said, my mind already calculating towards the most likely possibility.

"He's lonesome." Said the twins, answering my question. They then stared pointedly at the classroom door. Not comprehending their eye movements, I stared at them in confusion. That's when an impatient "ahem" came from the front of the room.

Suddenly understanding, I flipped around. The teacher gave me a death stare before resuming his teaching. I noticed that throughout the rest of the period, he gave me a very hard time.

With a new-found fire, I found myself wanting desperately to befriend the scary-looking Ritsu boy. _Who knows, maybe if he had a friend, he wouldn't be so scary. _At least, that was what I thought at the time.

(Later; ((again)) 3:01 P.M.)

Walking out into the still chilly air, I felt an overwhelming calm settle over me. I couldn't resist the urge to stretch my arms out towards the sky. I playfully grasped at the sky with my hands, taking in the peaceful emotion that calmed all of my senses.

_No Host Club today!_ I thought jovially.

But suddenly, my senses were clouded with fear. The cold air, instead of electrifying my quickly evaporating good mood, sent memories of Ritsu into my head. I cringed. Why was I so terrified of him? I kind of pissed me off that he was freaking me out so much. It was, and always had been, my policy to attempt to see some form of good in every person that I met, no matter how large or miniscule (miniscule being my brother) that goodness was. But with Ritsu... all I wanted to do was turn the other way and run. But that emotion came from instinctual nature, and I wanted to be stronger than that. I felt my fear slowly mixing in with a depressed feeling. Why was I so weak? In reality, I was a pitiful person, unable to even introduce myself to one person just because of an irrational fear of them that could be a complete misjudgment of their true character.

With these ugly emotions swirling around inside me, I trotted down the first outdoor staircase and began to walk by the huge columns where I had seen Ritsu just that morning. I chuckled nervously to myself. _Wouldn't it be funny if Ritsu was by the same column, waiting to talk to me?_ Watching my feet carefully as I went down the last few steps, I landed on flat ground. I looked up, my earlier suggestion causing butterflies to swarm in my stomach. To my relief, Ritsu was not by the columns.

He was in the middle of the walkway.

Coming straight towards me.


	6. Sighs

Chapter 6

I sucked in a raspy breath. Every part of myself that wasn't numbed from the cold was numbed from fear. My heart skipped millions of beats, pounding irregularly with every footstep that Ritsu took towards me. My eyes were frozen open, watching the red-headed boy approach me.

_It's okay, Kara._ I rationalized. _It's not like he's going to pull out a gun and shoot you._

Or would he?

He walked toward me slowly, as though I was in a strange dream. His eyes were downcast, his hands in his pockets. He almost seemed unaware of where he was going, but only one thing told me that that wasn't the case. Every once in a while, he would look up. It was always just a brief second, but I caught it every time. He was looking up at me. To check if I was still there? I didn't know. But I had a feeling that my assumption was correct. Clenching my fists, I awaited the inevitable confrontation.

Two more steps. Just two, and he would be standing right in front of me. My lungs ached from the lack of oxygen intake. It had been a long while since I had breathed in a decent breath of air. His sound of his steps seemed to reverberate throughout my head, causing me to feel dizzy. And just when I thought he couldn't get any closer...

He passed right by me.

His shoulder brushed my own, and he looked up just in time to mumble an apology before walking off in some unknown direction behind me.

Even two minutes after the encounter, I was stock still. My breaths came in shallow gulps, and I refrained from turning to check if he was still in my line of sight. After a good four minutes, I let my breath out in a gust. I slumped my shoulders in relaxation and closed my eyes, drinking in the relieved feeling.

"Well... That was a rip-off." I mumbled to myself.

I was so sure that Ritsu's primary goal had been to approach me. What had happened? Where had I miscalculated? I found myself once again questioning my own ability to judge emotions and my 'finely tuned' sociology skills. It seemed that for every day I attended this school, a part of my self confidence shattered and died, forever lost to Ouran's cruel will.

Sighing in a dejected manner, I started to trudge towards Ouran's elaborately designed front entrance. Now that my terrifying almost-encounter with Ritsu had ended, I was feeling extremely tired. I also realized that it was probably around 3:20. I hoped to dear God that Renge hadn't gotten impatient and left without me. With no cell phone (I hadn't cared to ask for one) I would be forced to walk all the way back into the school and ask an administrator for assistance. For some people, that seems like quite a simple task, but in Ouran... well, good luck. With Ouran being such a large school, it would take me ten minutes just to get to a phone, much less reach someone at Renge's mansion. Their phone lines were constantly busy. I found my body getting more and more slumped as I considered this as a likely outcome.

"You're... Kara Houshakuji, right?"

Startled, I spun around. To my absolute shock, my eyes met with Ritsu's Yankee form that, scarily enough, was standing a mere 5 feet away from me. His eyes stared at me with a piercing gaze, almost as if each of them were poised daggers.

Gulping visibly, I managed to stutter, "Ye...yeah. And y-you are?" I tried to smile, but it more than likely turned out to be something along the lines of a grimace. _Has he been... waiting for me? Was he behind me the whole time?_ I could almost feel the sweat drops. Obviously, Ritsu was either a naturally quiet person or a professional stalker.

Sighing in a rough, angry manner, he put his hand behind his head. His movements were jerky, not at all graceful or poised the way his eyes had been. It was almost as if he was nervous. Agitatedly he said, "Ritsu Kasanoda." Folding his arms across his chest, his glare became even more powerful. "Look, you don't have to be so freakin' scared of me, you got that?" The corners of his lips angled downward, and the rest of his facial features seemed to follow their lead.

Breaking my eyes from his stare, I looked down at my feet. I simply nodded, knowing that if I spoke, my voice would break or, in the more likely sense, just be a faint whisper. I kept my eyes down, not daring to chance a look at him.

After a while of silence, I became slightly worried. What was he doing? Getting ready to attack? Positioning his gun? Or had he simply walked away? The pressure of the situation was causing me to shake, so I finally decided to look up at him before I exploded. He was no longer looking at me, but off to the left of himself. His expression looked pained. Slowly, he let his body slump. Pulling his hands out of his pockets, he let out a sigh.

"Look." He began, still not looking at me. "About this morning, I'm.. I'm sorry if I scared you. I just can't help it..." He paused then to study my face, waiting for my reaction. I don't know what kind of weird look I had on, because he immediately continued, "... you know... looking so mean..."

All at once I felt and extremely heavy lump of guilt settle on me. He was... self conscious. About how he looked! And I had been so... judgmental. I felt horrid as I watched him, his eyes now sad, begging for me to see him in a different light. Straightening myself, I squeaked, "I'm... so sorry." His eyebrows went up, his face surprised. "I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I guess... I was just judging by appearances... er, not that you look mean but, uh, you know..." His face was now expressionless, watching me intently. "Ugh, I'm just really sorry..."

Continuing to babble, I watched as he rolled his eyes. Then, to my slight discomfort, he took two quick steps forward. I didn't run away, though; there was a glimmer of amusement in his eyes and it almost seemed to take the 'scary' out of his demeanor. With one hand, he reached out and covered my mouth.

I was immediately silent. Not out of fear, though.

His eyes were now warm and friendly. He was the same boy, but now... his scariness had all but dissipated. A small smile appeared on his lips. "It's okay. You don't need to apologize."

I felt the heat rush to my face. Instinctively, I knew I was blushing. This was the closest I had ever come in contact with a boy (nixing my brother). I looked away, not daring to struggle out of his grasp.

Suddenly realizing what he was doing, he blushed and stepped back.

"Uh, well..." He stammered, scratching the back of his head. "I'll... uh, see you around, then... ?" He almost asked this, and his eyes caught mine once again. They now had a slightly hopeful air about them.

I smiled, genuinely happy. Happy that his eyes no longer held that violent nature in them as they had only moments ago. "Sure. That sounds good. You can sit with me at lunch... you, Haruhi, and I! I'll just have to drag Haruhi to the dining hall..." I began to make various plans about how to get Haruhi to, unknowingly, come to the dining hall and stay there for lunch.

Ritsu's face turned beat red. "You don't... you don't have to do all that for me..." He began to scratch his head even harder, and I was worried that he'd break skin if he continued.

I smiled warmly in his direction. I was delighted. Only this morning I had been wishing that Ritsu and I could be friends, and look what happened...

"AH!" I shrieked. Ritsu looked up in surprise. I panicked internally and my eyes grew wide. I flipped around as fast as I could and started to sprint towards Ouran's entrance, running as fast as my legs could carry me. I yelled back, "See you tomorrow, Ritsu!" I caught a glimpse of him way behind, still in the same position. I could almost imagine him, scratching his head, wondering what was wrong with me. I would have some explaining to do tomorrow...

I ran desperately toward the limo pick-up area in front of the school, my heart beating erratically. Part of it was out of the exertion of running, but the other part of it was from fear. The fear of what I knew was unavoidably true.

In front of Ouran Academy, there was nothing but emptiness. Not a limo in sight.

Falling against a nearby column, I breathed heavily in defeat, my hands on my knees.

_Crap. I knew she would leave me here. _I then proceeded to snarl aloud in the empty parking lot's general direction.


	7. Options

Chapter 7

(Huff... pant... pant... huff...)

As I ran (sprinted) my way to Music Room Three, I couldn't help but wonder why I was going so fast. It's not like the Host Club _needed_ me there. I guess I was just sub-consciously attempting to avoid Renge's verbal abuse that I would most definitely receive if I showed up late. However, I had been late before, and Renge hadn't said anything too emotionally damaging.

_I guess there really is no use in running, though. _I thought.I was pretty late already. But even so I took the steps two at a time, turning corner after corner like a speed demon. Fortunately for me, I was able to catch myself before I went headfirst into the large, ornate double doors of Music Room Three.

I took a moment to catch my breath. In the silence that lingered around me, not a sound emerged from any direction. I suddenly realized that if there were costumers inside the Music Room, there would most definitely be eligible giggles and girly laughter coming from the patrons. However, I heard almost no sound coming from behind the doors. Putting my ear close to the door, I listened intently.

(Mumble... mumble mumble...)

"Phew," I breathed, very much relieved. _At least all this running wasn't a total waste of time. _However, I still found it odd that it was so quiet from within the room. Unless the club was putting on some ridiculous show for the guests, there was no reason for it to be so inactive and... dormant-like.

I took my time as I opened the doors, reaching slowly for the handle. As I finally took hold of the right door handle, I cringed. The door swung open and I peered inside. What kind of cosplay was it today?

To my surprise, the Host Club members were not in cosplay. To be more precise, they were just... sitting there. I quickly took a scan of the room. Not a client in sight.

Confused, I waited until their heads turned towards me.

"Oh, it's you." The twins said in unison, looking at me with their famous little bored look.

"Keep a cap on your excitement," I mumbled, walking towards them. After making a point of looking confused, I finally asked, "So, where are all the guests at?"

"Oh, I thought I had already told you, but the Host Club is closed today, " Kyoya-senpai said in a matter-of-fact kind of tone. "We're having an emergency meeting to plan for the up-coming Christmas party. I assume you'll be attending?" He continued to type on the computer in front of him, not looking at me. I wondered if he was already signing me up, not caring for my answer.

"Eh... ah..." I grasped at the jumbled up excuses that I had stored in my head, attempting to grab one and use it to, once again, get out of a formal event. I had never been fond of large parties, and this one was undoubtedly going to be unnecessarily rotund. I had learned over the years to have a 'back up plan' stored in my noggin so that I would never have to attend another ridiculous, overly pampered get-together. I held my hands up in a 'surrender' gesture. "I'd rather not go to anything that I don't _have_ to be at, so I probably won't be going..."

"Wow, it's almost as if.."

" ...you and Haruhi are related." The twins said, finishing each-others sentences with perfect timing. Haruhi glared at them as they smiled cheekily in his direction.

Suddenly, I realized something.

"Hold on, where's Renge?" I asked, searching the room again.

"Oh, Renge-chan? She didn't come today," Honi-senpai said happily, chomping on another piece of cake. Mori-senpai, standing idly behind him, proceeded to wipe off the cake smudges from his greedy little mouth.

"Eh? Then why am I here?" I shrieked.

"Actually, there was something I'd been meaning to ask you about," Kyoya-senpai said, typing away. He never seemed to break once in what seemed to be his endless typing. What was he doing, writing a novel?

"Oh?" I asked. I tried to make it sound like I was amused, but in actuality... I was really freaked out. When Kyoya-senpai had something to tell you, it was never good. I had learned this and other important tid-bits from hanging out with Hikaru, Kaoru, and Haruhi all day in class.

"Yes, well," He began, seemingly gathering his thoughts. "We as a group have decided something..." Surprisingly enough, he took that opportunity to stare in my direction. It was almost as if he was looking up at me to gauge my reaction. Seeming satisfied, he continued by saying:

"We think it would be best if you were to cosplay as we do."

Silence.

"_Ohhhhhh_ no. There is no way in _hell_ that I am cos-playing."

"Why not?" The twins said, slinking their way over to my sides and putting their elbows on my shoulders. "Renge cos-plays, why can't you?"

"Cuz I'm not Renge," I mumbled, shrinking my way out of their leaning stance.

Suddenly, the doors behind me exploded open, and in the entrance stood a panting Tamaki-senpai.

_Oh yeah._ I realized internally._ I suppose I hadn't see him in here..._

"Sorry... (pant) I'm... (huff) so... (huff) late... (pant)" Tamaki-senpai attempted to settle his breathing rate as we all stared openly at him. Considering that he was the president of the Host Club, it seemed odd that he would even show up late in the first place.

"There you are, _Tono._ We'd thought you'd never show," the twins said, occupying the space I had left between them by leaning on each other. "Where were you, picking out frilly dresses for Haruhi to wear?"

_Wait... why would Haruhi... wear frilly dresses? Does Tamaki-senpai... have a fetish? Or is cross-dressing something that Haruhi's into?_ I shuddered visibly.

"Shut up... And no! I had studies to catch up on." Tamaki-senpai said begrudgingly, looking up as he approached me. A look of surprise, followed by a look of intense worry, flashed across his features. But just as swiftly as they appeared, both emotions quickly dissipated. Before I could even blink he was before me, on one knee, my hand in his.

"My princess, once again it brings me great joy to be in your presence. How your very image lifts my soul to the highest heaven!" He exclaimed. He then proceeded to stand up and flash his brilliant white smile.

"Of course it does," I said glumly, snatching my hand away.

"So, Tono, we just told Kara that we think she should cosplay..." The twins said, coming around from behind him onto his sides. I could tell that they were waiting for his reaction. I silently cursed at them. I knew that once Blondie-senpai got into it, it would be hard to talk my way out of anything. His up-beat personality was intensely hard to fight against, sometimes.

His smile lit up even brighter than before, and he exclaimed, "Oh, yes! So what do you think Kara, of course you'll cosplay, right? Right?"

"Like I said, no way in heck will I..."

"Alright then, we'll give you two options," Kyoya-senpai said. He looked up from the computer once again. Lights danced across his glasses, and his eyes were obscured from view. This only enhanced his evil, conniving expression.

_Oh no._

"You _will_ cosplay _and_ go to the Christmas party..." He said. I already didn't like the way this was sounding.

"Or... what?" I said smugly. I had figured out his ruse, and it wasn't going to fly. "You'll sick your family's private police on me? I'm not afraid of them." I folded my arms across my chest and stared him down. … Up, technically. He was, and is, still taller than me.

"No, not even close," He said with an even smug-er voice.

He then proceeded to simply and horrifically state, "We'll sick Renge on you."

...

_Oh... oh God no._


	8. Questions

Chapter 8

"Wah!"

Tripping over my 18th century English cosplay for the fifteenth time, I once again thought about how I had gotten into this situation. _How? Why?_ These and other similar one worded questions buzzed throughout my head as I once again attempted to regain my balance on my much too high-heels. Seething, I failed to reach the perfect point of balance and fell to the ground once again. _Darn these heels!_ My mind screamed.

Of course, the huge hoop skirt wasn't helping anything, either. As I pried my face off the cold marble, my face met with two small, shiny black shoes.

"Um... Are you alright, Miss Houshakuji?" Haruhi's voice. I craned my neck to look up and confirm that the voice had, in fact, come from Haruhi.

"Yeah... I'm fine." Offering his hand out to me, he smiled sheepishly. As he helped me to my feet, I once again wondered why I hadn't tried to escape yet. The nearby open window didn't seem like two stories. I was sure I could make the jump and survive. So why didn't I try it? Oh, that's right.

Renge.

The threat that Kyoya had thrown at me had been too much to handle, and I had fallen beneath its persuasion. I was most definitely not strong enough to challenge Renge, and I certainly had lived long enough with her to know it wasn't the wisest thing to do, either.

"Are you sure? … Miss Houshakuji?"

Turning to Haruhi, I stared at him for a moment. I was trying to decode his words and comprehend their meaning. I wasn't so good at thinking and listening at the same time. "Yeah, I'm fine." Brushing my hoop skirt off, I said, "You know, you could just call me Kara. We are in the same class, after all..."

Tilting his head to the side in a cute manner, he said, "Well, if you'd prefer it..."

I took a minute to register Haruhi's outfit. Fitting in with today's theme, he was wearing an old tuxedo-looking outfit. It was colored with Autumn looking shades. However, instead of looking all shiny and new, I had more of a weathered appearance. It looked very good on him.

"Um, I like your cosplay." I said dumbly. I also wasn't very good at coming up with catchy, cool things to say.

"Oh, really?" He looked down at his clothes then shrugged indifferently. "I guess it's okay. Then his eyes looked into mine. He smiled warmly. "What's really cute is that dress on you."

"Thanks, but... I don't know. It's kind of annoying..."

_Hold it. _My mind stopped me mid-sentence. Any other time. Any other boy. If _any_ boy at all had said those words to me, the way Haruhi had complemented, my reaction would've been completely different. I would've blushed, probably grimace, and then walk away as to not draw attention to my obvious discomfort. That's just the way I am. But this... this person...

"What's going on? It couldn't be that...?" I mumbled. My mind was racing frantically. I mean, I knew that Haruhi was awfully girly-looking, and I knew that Tamaki-senpai had always been overly affectionate towards him, but... It couldn't be that... _No, that's impossible..._

"Huh?" Haruhi questioned. Suddenly, without warning, he was bombarded by his usual costumers. Of course, being slightly slow, I didn't exactly comprehend their presence. My mind was still going off on random tangents, desperately trying to decode various hints and clues from my past experiences with Haruhi and the Club. Meanwhile, all of them oohed and awed at him, telling him that his cosplay was 'absolutely perfect on him' and 'super cute'. Then, at the exact same time, all of the girls' heads turned towards me. I cringed.

"_Ehhh_? Kara-Chan! You look _so_ pretty in that dress!" The girls exclaimed, flocking around me. I felt an instant claustrophobia-like sensation, but I held back my instinct to plow through them to freedom.

"Ah! So cute!"

"Lucky, you get to cosplay!"

"That color really brings out your eyes!" It was my turn to be attacked by the girls. _Lucky me._

Through the wall of girls slowly flocking in from all over the room, I noticed the twins in the background. They appeared to be chuckling. I zoned in on their conversation, blocking out the girls' voices. It was tough, but I specialized in listening in on conversations. This was mostly because I had had to listen in on my brother and his friends' constantly over the course of my childhood. He and his friends loved to make various plans that would, in turn, make my life miserable. It had been my constant mission to keep their plans from going into affect. I carefully studied the twins and, fortunately, was able to pick up their voices.

"Well, I guess it's time we added a _real_ female to the club, huh?" One twin joked quietly.

"Yeah, but sooner or later the club would be turned into another Zuka Club." Said the other twin. Then they looked at each other and stuck their tongues out. Then they laughed again.

_Hold on, back up_. My mind told me. What did, uh... Hikaru... (or was in Kaoru?) mean by the 'real girl' comment? _Does that mean... ?  
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I was right! Haruhi... sh-... he's a she! A-a girl!

But, why? Why the heck would the Host Club have a he-she in their club? Was it black-mail? Sabotage? Did she owe them something? Or was it purely out of her wanting to?

Knowing that the latter option could not be true, (considering Haruhi's personality) I made this my new mission: I had to confront them. _As long as there's doubt, I can't let this matter drop._

With a new-found determination (I'd been getting a lot of that lately) I marched right up to Haruhi. Well... not exactly. It took me a while to claw my way out of the slowly growing mountain of gushing girls. To my relief, they slowly started to dissipate as I escaped. Haruhi had, to my disbelief, moved away from the Moe pile and had sat down at a far-away table. He, er... she, was now sipping nonchalantly on some instant coffee. _Ha. Way to leave me in their clutches, Haruhi_. I continued to walk in her direction, excited to reveal the truth.

Then I realized an important fact. _What if it's a secret? What kind of idiot am I to just ask her up front like this?_

"I'll wait till after club hours." I mumbled. Luckily, Haruhi hadn't noticed me approaching. I also noticed that her costumers had returned to her and were taking their places around the table where she sat. Turning around, I scanned the room. Things had mostly returned to normal, so I proceeded to walk to a nearby table and sit. Naturally, I tripped my way over to it.

Trembling with anticipation, I sat in the cushy chair, making sure to not let my hoop skirt fly up and smack me in the face. After getting comfortable, I sighed in relief and wondered how long till the hour was up. Checking the nearby clock, I was dismayed to discover that there was a good half-hour left till the Host Club shut down for the day. I once again sighed, this time in frustration.

Then I began the long wait.

(4:44 P.M. ((After Club Hours)))

"Um, Haruhi?" I asked. After shedding that ridiculous excuse of a dress and returning to my still-just-as-bad uniform, the earlier confidence that I had possessed was gone. It had taken everything I had just to approach him/her now. I had had a long time to contemplate my theory as I was changing back into my uniform earlier, and I had mentally battled and weighed the various percentages of Haruhi being male or female.

It was such a ridiculous argument. I mean, there was the possibility of his/her femininity just being an act, or the jokes about Haruhi's girlishness having actually been real jokes, but if I really thought about it, I knew the truth. Those options were ridiculous, and they were merely rationalizations. And so here I was, ready to pop the question.

Metaphorically speaking.

Haruhi turned around with his (er... her) totally-out-of-it demeanor and asked, "Yes, what is it, Kara?"

Without shame, or me even looking, I could feel the eyes and ears of the other Host Club members trained on me, straining to figure out was I was about to ask. Thinking back on it now, it would've been funny to have turned around quickly and glared at them.

"Well, ah, um..." I began, now extremely nervous. And when I was nervous, I babbled. "I know that this question may seem a little strange and it's probably_ totally_ untrue and I may _really_ hurt your feelings, but it's been weighing on my mind so I gotta ask," (breath) "… but, ah, um... Haruhi..."

Now looking completely interested in what I was about to say, Haruhi asked with a slight eagerness in her tone, "Kara, what is it?" The room had gone silent, and I knew for sure now that everyone was listening intently. I wiped my sweaty hands on my uniform.

"Well..."

I took a deep breath.

"Haruhi... are you a girl?"


	9. Siblings

Chapter 9

The room had grown unusually silent. For an unknown reason, I felt heat rushing up to my face. Was it because I felt as though I was wrong about my assumption? Or was it because of all the stares I was receiving after my tactless comment?

Each of them had a different expression. The twins and Tamaki-senpai looked shocked... to say at the least. Their eyes were wide and their mouths were hanging open. I briefly wondered if it was because my question was true or because it was such an outrageous comment that they made those faces. Huni-senpai, on the other hand, had a slightly less enthused expression. Surprised, sure, but shocked? No. Mori-senpai looked placid, as per the norm. I stood there, drinking in their reactions.

_What should I do?_ I thought. It's been quiet for a while now... _Should I say something? _I snarled inwardly. _Come on, tell me if I'm right or wrong already. _However, the room remained silent.

_Oh well... I might as well pretend to be confident in my theory_.

"Don't bother lying to me, because.. I-I know I'm right!" I said. However, this just earned me a more embarrassed air about myself. Once again, there was silence. _These guys are horrible at easing atmospheric emotions, aren't they?_ However, this silence was much briefer than its prior.

"Hmph."

I turned around and, startled, saw that it was Kyoya who had emitted this sound. _Oh yeah.. I didn't judge his reaction earlier, did I? _

"You should count yourself lucky that the customers are gone..." Kyoya said, looking at me. His eyes were even more icy than usual. "That's quite a dangerous thing to... _verbally_ assume."

"Great." I listened to the voice. Hikaru, was it? I guess he had worked up the courage to speak now that their 'Shadow King' had spoken up. "First Bosanova, now we..."

"... gotta deal with _another_ person that knows Haruhi's secret.." I turned around to look at them. Their expressions were bored, however, their was slight irritation in them. I chose to ignore this little detail and incur their displeasure.

"But... but why? Why in the heck is there a girl in an all boys club?" I asked curiously. Not expecting a serious answer from any of them, I turned my gaze to the only sane person in the Host Club.

Said sane-person looked up at me with those big brown eyes of hers. Apparently she had been zoning out. _Your secret's exposed and you go off into a daydream? Typical Haruhi..._ She frowned and sighed, then said almost begrudgingly, "Eh, ah.. Well, I... kind of destroyed their 8,000,000 Yen vase, so I owe them 1000 customer requests to pay them back..."

_What an insane reason._ I remember thinking.

"Ky-Kyoya! What are we going to do! She's not like Bosanova! She's mean! How will we convince her not to tell!" Tamaki's rudeness suddenly burst forth, as well as a puddle of his tears. Frowning in his general direction, I considered the intelligence behind me even bringing up this subject at all. If Kyoya was going to attack me again, then I was better off in the dark. _Ah crap._ I thought. _Is he going to go for that Renge threat again? _I turned to Kyoya.

"Please. That's hardly the issue here. Stop crying, idiot." As a dark side of Kyoya emerged, and Tamaki started in on a rant about Kyoya's evil nature, I felt the Shadow King fix his stare upon my unfortunate self. I tried to glare back, but I was almost certain that Shadow Kings could smell fear, so I knew the point of trying was probably moot. _I know I've read about his kind somewhere..._

"Now, as for you. Will I have to use same tactics as I had to use on Bosanova, or will you agree to move on quietly and never pass this little bit of information on?" A look of pure evil emerged on his face.

"W-w-what did you do to... to Bosanova? Er, I mean, Kasanoda..." I figured I might as well get the details on the newest threat posted in my direction, considering I wasn't going to break the deal anyway. What was the point in that? I had always taken pride in knowing things that others didn't, and seeing others completely unaware made me all the merrier. Plus, I wouldn't do that to Haruhi. She seemed like a good person, as far as I knew her, and I wasn't planning on ruining any relationship that she and I had cultivated thus far. As I waited for Kyoya, or anyone for that matter, to respond, something dawned on me.

"Wait a minute... Hold on!"

"Eh?" The club members faced me in interest and awaited my next statement.

"I just saw Kasanoda two days ago, and he looked fine to me. What you did to him obviously wasn't as bad as you make it out to be..." I was mostly thinking out loud at this point, but before I allowed anyone to counter me, I felt the need to get something else off of my chest. "Also, I don't understand how Haruhi's quota of 1000 customers is going to pay you guys back. It'll do nothing to up your money deposits, much less pay back her loan of, what was it? 8,000,000 Yen? In fact, you're insane if you think her 'services' will even pay back a fraction of that! Haruhi!"

At this point, everyone looked about ready to jump on the chance to battle against me with their own words, but I once again was able to cut them off. Or, Haruhi was, at least. "W-what?"

"Do you like being here at the Host Club?"

"Well, uh... I can't say I enjoy it..."

"Okay, well... if you had a choice between being here or _anywhere_ else in Japan, where would you choose to be?"

Now the guys were really into this. Tamaki-senpai, especially. It appeared as though he was waiting on pins and needles for her response.

"Probably anywhere else in Japan..." Haruhi responded. I'm pretty sure insulting them wasn't her intention, but no matter which way you cut it...

"Waaaah! Haruhi, why? Do you hate us?" Blondie-senpai responded in the way I thought he would. Tears, of course.

Haruhi stared at him with an expression that could only be described as apathetic. She held up her hands in mock defense as Tamaki began to shake her about.

_Hmph_. I started to question the wisdom of me having ever asked the "forbidden question". _What on earth have I gotten myself (and Haruhi) into? Mayve I shouldn't have said anything. I am just creating problems for these people. But... it really is a stupid situation. What the heck kind of boy club would keep a girl hostage?_

Amid the frantic emotional breakdown that Tamaki was having, a knock sounded from the direction of the club room's main, and only, entrance. After a short silence, the door to music room three burst open to reveal a small figure that was something I didn't expect, nor something I would ever want to expect.

_His supplementary classes... They aren't supposed to be over until 4:00..._ The other Host Club members looked at the figure in the doorway with surprise and confusion.

"Ah, there you are, Ane-Baka".

"A-Akio? What the... What are you doing here?"

WHAM!

I fell, Akio's backpack (undoubtedly filled with rocks) throwing me to the ground. Standing over me with a look that matched that of a bored demon-child, Akio looked around the room, analyzing and drinking in the scene. He smirked, then looked at me as I slowly pulled myself to my knees. His face then contorted with impatient anger.

"What the hell are you doing here, Kara? I've been waiting for forever for you to show up. All you ever think about is yourself. Did you even consider that I was waiting for you? It took me 15 minutes to even fucking find you." He snatched up his backpack and turned around to leave, motioning me to follow.

"Akio, you... have after school lessons..." I barely coughed out the words. A pain was spreading from... somewhere in my body. From some reason, I couldn't figure out where the discomfort was coming from.

"I pissed off the teacher. She told me to get out and go to the office. So I came here." He whipped out a yellow note, undoubtedly the write up of Akio's wrongdoings. He shrugged and said, "Here's the proof. I didn't wanna trouble the principal, so I figured I'd just go home and let him take a day off." He smiled at me.

"Wow. He reminds me of us." Hikaru nudged his twin and Kaoru nodded solemnly.

"An unruly younger brother. That would explain some of the personality traits in Kara... An apathy that some from years of abuse." Kyoya calmly scribbled in his notebook.

Embarrassed on behalf of myself, I looked at the other Host Club members. Disbelief. _Not entirely unexpected. _I knew that they were going to start asking questions any second now. _I really don't want to get them involved. I mean, he always does this. Being an ass to me is part of who he is. I really hope that they just forget about this. I'll apologize. I really... _

… _don't want them to care about this._

Suddenly, Tamaki rushed to my side and picked me up in a fluid motion, while at the same time saying:

"What on earth was the purpose of the assault? I can, and should, have you personally delivered to the chairman!"

_Shit no, don't engage him... _I thought.

"What, the backpack thing? She's fine. I just wanted to surprise her. And what the hell does my visit have to do with you? Is it a crime for me to come in here to see my sister? Do I need a permit? Maybe I just came in here 'cause I wanted to. And who the hell are you? What right do you have to defend her? Is she your girlfriend? Do you have special feelings for her?" He looked at me and laughed. "Ah, better question is, does she _deserve_ special feelings?"

Tamaki's face went white as he found himself unable to reply.

"Tamaki, stop." I pulled myself away from him. "Er... Tamaki-senpai, that is." I looked up at him. He looked at me with concern and began to check me for injuries.

"Who is this boy? And why did he-"

"No, Tamaki-senpai, when I said stop, I meant let it go." I pulled away from him once again. "Look, about this... no. About everything I said." I looked meaningfully at Haruhi. "I'm sorry. I wasted your time. And on behalf of my brother... I apologize. Look. From this point on, I won't bother you any more. Swear me to secrecy. I won't tell anyone. Just... do me a favor and forget this. You don't have to care. Please... don't care."

Tamaki took a step forward and opened his mouth, but said nothing. He hurriedly closed it and looked in, confused and... hurt? I watched him for a moment before bowing deeply.

"Please... forgive..."

I suddenly felt dizzy and weak. A trickle of liquid fell from my temple. I fell to the floor, Catching myself on my hands and knees. I watched as a single red drop fell to the marble.

_Damn it._ I thought. _So much for not getting them involved._


End file.
